Spelling Bees, Lycanthropes and Mouldy Books
by mrscribble
Summary: Remus and Tonks have a talk after Sirius' death, and they both learn something new. RemusTonks friendship, One-shot.


**A/N:** Well, I said a friendship one is coming, didn't I? Here you go! Oh, by the way, I have no idea what to call this, so apologies if the title is wacky. 

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Spelling Bees, Lycanthropes and Mouldy Books

Remus was sitting in the library, reading another of those mouldy tomes stacked about the place, when Tonks found him. He didn't look up at her, even when she went and sat next to him.

Finally, after what seemed to be an hour, he gave a sigh of resignation and looked up. "Hello, Nymphadora. Did you want me?" Remus asked, as one of his long fingers pushed up the reading glasses which had been, a second before, resting precariously on the end of his nose.

The young woman scowled, her dark eyes stormy. "Don't you _dare_ pretend nothing has happened," she said angrily, then stood up in front of his watchful eyes. "You know it's not easy."

Remus did not reply. Instead, he looked back down at the thick book he was holding, and managed to read a few lines before her nimble fingers ripped the page out in a rage. He watched as the torn paper fluttered limply to the floor, where it rested miserably.

"Just what the_ bleeding_ hell do you think you're doing?" Tonks hissed, her dark grey hair reflecting her mood. "You can't sit here and pretend_ he_ hasn't died."

Remus closed his eyes, rubbing his aging face with one hand and trying to control his emotions. When he finally opened his eyes, he simply looked back down at the book in cold dismissal. The young woman clenched her hands into fists, then snatched the entire book out of the man's hands.

"It's like you don't even know who he _was_," said Tonks furiously, "You're not telling us what's up with you, every morning you come here and read until you finally go upstairs to sleep... you're a shell, Remus, you're not telling us what you're thinking! It's like a Dementor came and took your soul, you hardly eat, you're clammed up like some sort of mollusk, you didn't even go to the Order memorial - I don't even know who you are any more. Ever since Sirius died - "

Remus' fury rose, breaking through his self-control. He stood, raising a hand as if to slap the woman in anger but just barely stopped himself, his hand frozen in mid-air next to her cheek. Her sharp eyes pierced into his, and his eyes immediately turned wary, anticipating any further danger from the clumsy, but capable witch.

Tonks broke the thick silence. "Slap me," she said, her voice dripping with ice. "_Slap me_."

Remus stared at Tonks, his eyes flickering with confusion. After a while, he sat back down, ignoring the witch completely.

Tonks scowled again, but said in a softer voice, "You can't mourn like this, you know. You don't need to protect yourself. Nobody wants to hurt you."

After a period of silence, Tonks said exasperatedly, "Don't think the whole werewolf rubbish again! Merlin knows we've had enough of that from you!"

His face, weary as ever, displayed slight anger towards her statement. "Let me tell you a story," Remus said quietly, slowly removing his glasses. She raised an eyebrow, a sign that he could continue.

"Once upon a time, a little over three decades ago, there was a boy," he said, watching her face carefully. "The boy was special, in some ways - he was a good speller, reader, was very studious, already could cast a few spells, and one other thing - he was a werewolf.  
"His family was not extraordinarily interesting; they were a rather poor magical family who lived in a small house in a small village. In this village, everyone knew everyone else's secrets, and the whole town knew of the little boy's lycanthropy. Despite his excellence in schoolwork, it suffices to say he wasn't very popular among the other children. Although they didn't see how such a small, scrawny boy could be a danger, they heeded their parent's advice, and rarely, if never, went near him. He was a lonely child, and these whispers behind his back did nothing to improve his self-esteem.  
"As a six-year-old boy, he was outstandingly absorbed in books. He loved to read about great heroes, and was far above the usual reading level of the other children. His spelling, too, was far superior to other children's.  
"Now, there once came a chance for him to become more popular and less lonely. One day, a man in a fancy suit came and established a spelling bee for the village's children to enter. The little boy was delighted, and entered straight away; he shot up through the ranks of other children, and made it to the village finals.  
"If he won the finals, he might have been able to win not only a bag of galleons for his ma and da, but also the trust and respect of the other children. He was up against one of the local school's bullies, who specialised in spelling, writing, and beating others up.  
"There came a close tie between the two. The other, bigger boy misspelled one word, and so did the little six-year-old. The tie-breaker was a word he was familiar with - the word _lycanthropic_."

Remus paused, looking up at Tonks. Her eyes had softened considerably, and she was watching Remus tell the tale very shrewdly.

"The boy knew that if he spelled this word correctly, he would win so much more than just the money prize. However, the whole village was watching him, knowing about his lycanthropy, and the burden of his curse weighed heavily down on him. He chanced a look at the other boy, who clearly was stumped - and then, the little boy stepped off the platform. He walked away, towards the woods on the edge of the small town. Behind him, all the villagers were laughing and cheering, clearly elated for the boy who had won - because, as you know, if a contestant gives up their position, they are disqualified. The bigger boy had won the contest."

Tonks blinked as she realised Remus' story had come to an end. She bit her lip, then asked, "Who was the little boy?" even though she knew the answer.

Remus turned his head away from her gaze. "His name was Remus Lupin, and ever since that incident, he's run away from all his fears and sorrows. Love will eventually break; it might be so strong can withstand Voldemort - but its fragility..."

Remus trailed off, his eyes set on the mahogany coffee table before him. Tonks moved closer to him, placing her hand on his. "Love isn't _that_ bad, Remus," she said softly. "All of the Order members love you. We need you, Remus. _Harry_ needs you. He's going to need a father figure in his life, and I have no doubt he'll turn to you."

Remus froze, and Tonks grinned playfully at him, her tone now cheery. "That's right, Remus. You have to give him the love talk, the girl talk, the talk about the birds and the bees - "

Remus groaned as Tonks leapt up, skipping out of the room.


End file.
